


There is a peace in letting go

by orphan_account



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-17
Updated: 2016-02-17
Packaged: 2018-05-21 05:55:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6040735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU for the last episode</p>
            </blockquote>





	There is a peace in letting go

 

_There is peace in letting go  
_ _something I know you have craved  
_ _so, let it be so  
_ _and let this fire be the grave._

 

As the room set alight in blue flames, despite the knowledge he would likely never remember anything about himself or anyone else, Stanley felt a sense of peace.

And for a few seconds that peace was so euphoric it almost made him cry.

\--------

That sense of peace carried within him for a long time afterward. As he was recovering his memories, surrounded by his family for the first time in a long time Stanley Pines felt less bitter and more content. Every new memory was another part of himself gained, every new memory was something he could relish.

It was like he was reborn, like he had new eyes to see the world through.

Experimentally Stanley took off his glasses while looking at the rebuilding of the Mystery Shack.

…

“Nope, still looks like shit.” Laughing to himself, Stanley put his glasses back on.

Manly Dan, working on the house’s roof, paused in his constant hammering to shoot a glance at Mr. Mystery. “You sayin’ I have bad house building skills Pines?”

“I’m sayin’ it looks like you need a break. You want a pitt cola? Only five bucks.” Stanley grinned and almost let Manly Dan take the five dollars out of his wallet, but ultimately he said, “Don’t worry it’s on the house.”

Stanley whistled as he climbed the ladder, two pitt colas in hand. Manly Dan wasn’t the best conversationalist but he knew a lot about the woods and the sunset looked so lovely from the shack’s roof, red and yellows and the shiest color of pink blushing against the tall pine trees.

\-----------------------

The twins’ birthday party was a huge success. Stan watched proudly from the background until Stanford put a hand on his shoulder and led him to the side of the house away from the noise. For the first time in days, something other than peace was felt. A strike of something cold crawled up Stanley’s back.

“I didn’t want to say anything with everyone listening-” Stanford started.

“Whoa hold on, I have something to say too.” Stanley interrupted. For a moment he was sure Ford would say something against him, something like, “Well, yes but I go first.” but thankfully Ford and his relationship had been mending on recent days. Ford nodded for Stanley to go ahead.

“I’m moving out of Gravity Falls.”

“What?” Ford said, the serious expression he adopted falling into a shell-shocked face. “What’s the purpose of this? What’s going to happen to the shack?”

“I’m closing down the shack, I think this town’s sick of mysteries at this point.”

This wasn’t going how Stan planned. Ford looked way more content when he imagined this scenario coming down. Now the man just looked...well he was cupping his watch and looking at Stan like at he was at a lost on what to do. Stan shrugged internally, he lifted his hand and pointedly held it above the space between them. Obligingly Ford held out his own palm underneath his closed fist. Stan dropped the newly made keys to the Mystery Shack fall into his hands.

“Take good care of the house for me will ya? I mean I know it’s yours now and all but I just paid for the repairs and all that…” There’s a silence that the party encroaches on but never fully touches. Ford still has the keys in his open palms, staring at it.

“Why?” He says before looking Stanley in the eyes, his fingers not closing around the keys. His arm pushes forward,, but Stanley pushes Ford’s hands back towards him, closing six fingers around it until Stanford has them safely in his grasp.

“You remember how I described being shot by the memory gun was like, inside my mind?”

Stanford swallows, his eyes boring holes into Stanley’s face, as if by looking just hard enough he could find the burn marks, the flickers of ghostly blue fire burning across Stan’s skin.

“You said it was peaceful. Were you lying?”

“No, not about that. It was peaceful, and I think I realized why. It’s because I was finally letting go. All my life I’ve been clingin’ to things: clingin’ to you, to money, to the shack- but that wasn’t the right thing. I know that now.”

“No-”

Stanley held a hand up, and everything was silent again. So quiet that Stanley struggled to speak. Heart to hearts was never his forte but he needed to let that go too.

“When I thought about you going to that fancy smancy school all those years ago, I was terrified. You, leaving me behind. Who was I without you?” Ford’s mouth opened but Stan kept talking, “Nobody that’s who, I would’ve been no one stuck in a dumb town doing a dumb job and I got mad. I got so mad and I couldn’t let it go so I destroyed your ticket out of there. I mean, eventually you still left but what if I just let it go sooner?

And later, when you wrote me asking to come for help, I was so consumed by my troubles that I didn’t see the trouble you were in until it was too late. You looked terrible and I looked terrible but somehow I thought my terrible was more than yours and then you were gone.

But I’m over it now. Relearning everything made me see everything in a new light.” Ford shifted, his mouth flapping and his hand going up to clutch at the breast of his trenchcoat. There was the faint sound of crinkling but Stanley couldn’t hear it above his own voice.

“The truth is Sixer, I never needed you to be a successful person. And you didn’t need me for whatever dream I thought you had. That’s why I’m moving out of Gravity Falls because it’s time I moved on too, the kids are leaving, the town is changing, it’s time to see new places.”

With that Stanley let out a loud breath almost like a sigh, and suddenly he didn’t feel so cold anymore, so afraid. He smiled and he felt it and he loved it and the peace washed over him once more.

“So what were you going to say Stanford?”

Stanford let his hand fall away from his trench coat. He coughed once, twice and rubbed at his eyes and then said with a scratchy voice, “Nevermind. It’s not important anymore. Let’s get back to the party.”

They both turned to go before Stanley paused.

“Oh and Sixer?”

“Yes, Stanley?” Stanford asked, seemingly cautious. Stanley turned and held out his hand. “I never told you this before because I was caught up in my own stuff but...good luck with your paranormal mystery shenanigans. I couldn’t have dreamt of a better job for my weirdo twin than to chase monsters and ghosts, I was just too stubborn to see it.”

Stanford took his hand, giving him a firm shake, his six fingers enveloping Stanley’s smaller hand. There was something between them, a cold metal object between their hands. Stanley didn’t ask. Stanford seemed teary eyed, but then again, so did Stan.

“You too Stanley, whatever you decide to do after this, I wish you the best of luck.”

When Stanford let go, Stanley wasn’t surprised to see the cold metal that created a barrier between the flesh of their hands was the key.

“Keep it.” Stanford said, “Make a copy of it and give it to me, but I want you to keep the original. You’re always welcome back to Gravity Falls Stanley, and I want you to remember that.”

Stanley smiled before pocketing the key. “I’ll visit when the kids visit, make it a big family gathering.”

Stanford, his own little smile on his face. He punched Stanley in the arm, light and playful. “You better.”

“I should announce the mystery shack’s closing for good.” Stanley said, turning once more back to the party. “Jeesh, what will I tell Soos.”

Stanford lingered back, pulling a crinkled and faded photo from his inner breast pocket. Two boys smiled at him, a boat lovingly labelled the “Stan O’ War” sitting between them. With a sad smile, Stanford put the photo against the wall and smoothed out all the rumples on it before putting the photo back in his trenchcoat again.

.

.

.

I _’m doing what you wanted me to do  
_ _I’m letting you go, I’m setting you free  
_ _No more tugging and chasing you  
_ _Now it’s just us except more me_


End file.
